Father, girlfriend face felony charges

Father, girlfriend face felony charges

Father, girlfriend face felony charges

ASHEBORO — Two Asheboro residents have been charged in connection with Tuesday’s accidental shooting in which a 3-year-old girl was injured.

The child remains hospitalized at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, where she underwent surgery on Tuesday. She was transported to the facility by Randolph County Emergency Medical Services following the shooting, which occurred at about 12:45 p.m. Tuesday at 4851 Cameron Circle, Asheboro.

The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, as a result of its investigation, filed charges against William Monroe Simmons, 27, the father of the shooting victim, and Melisa Ann Mumpower, 26, his girlfriend. They both live at 4851 Cameron Circle, Asheboro.

They’ve both been charged with failing to store a firearm to protect a minor and felony child abuse in connection with the shooting. They were additionally each charged with three counts of misdemeanor child abuse, which deputies said were filed for the living conditions of the children in the residence.

Both were arrested by officers with the Winston-Salem Police Department at the hospital and taken to the Forsyth County Jail.

Simmons received a $35,500 secured bond, made his bond and has been released from custody.

Mumpower received a $6,300 secured bond and was still confined in the Forsyth County Jail Wednesday morning.

Officers on the scene Tuesday afternoon reported that an adult female had been cleaning when she heard a gunshot, went into the room where the noise came from and children were playing. She found the 3-year-old girl shot, apparently by another 3-year-old. The bullet from an unsecured .22-caliber rifle struck the child in an arm, traveled through her arm and entered the abdominal area.

The woman, now identified as Mumpower, was in the residence with her child and the two children of her boyfriend, Simmons. The children ranged in ages from 1 to 3 years old, according to the sheriff’s office.